System and method for making recordable wallet-size optical card

• US 4,680,460 A
• Filed: 08/06/1985
• Issued: 07/14/1987
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/1981
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LaserCard Corp. (Assa Abloy AB)
• Original Assignee: Drexler Technology Corporation (Assa Abloy AB)
• Inventors: Drexler, Jerome
• Primary Examiner(s): Trafton, David L.
• Application Number:
  US06/763,029
• Time in Patent Office: 707 Days
• Field of Search: 235/440, 235/454, 235/456, 235/468, 235/470, 235/487, 235/488, 350/361, 346/76 L, 430/10, 430/13, 365/106
• US Class Current: 235/488
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 1/12 otherwise than by punching
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06046 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/14 the marking being sensed by radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/14 using light without selection of wavelength, e.g. sensing reflected white light G06K7/10831 - G06K7/1097 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/25 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/0033 with cards or other card-like flat carriers, e.g. flat sheets of optical film
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/24 Record carriers characterised by shape, structure or physical properties, or by the selection of the material characterised by the arrangement of information on the carrier G11B7/007
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/24085 Pits
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/26 Apparatus or processes specially adapted for the manufacture of record carriers

Abstract

A system and method for making a data card involving prerecording information, such as reference position information or servo tracks, on a strip of high resolution, immediate read laser recording material, then adhering the strip to a card such that the strip is recordable in place. A protective transparent laminating material is bonded to the recording surface and then user information is recorded on the strip using a laser aimed at the strip through the laminating material.

Claims

1. A method of making an optical data card comprising,

prerecording information on a strip of immediate read laser recording material,

adhering said strip to a wallet-size card base, said strip being laser recordable in place on said card,

bonding a protective transparent laminating material to the recording surface of said strip,

recording information on said strip with a laser through the laminating material and

reading said information of said strip with said laser as said information is written.

2. A method of making an optical data card for information storage and recording comprising,

photolithographically prerecordiing information on a strip of high resolution, immediate read, direct-read-after-write laser recording material,

adhering said strip to one side of a wallet-size plastic card base, said strip being laser recordable in place on said card,

bonding a protective transparent plastic laminating material to the recording surface of said strip,

recording information on said strip with a laser through the laminating material and

reading said information on said strip as said information is written.

3. A system for sequentially recording transaction data by means of a laser comprising,

a wallet size card with a transparent plastic laminating material protectively bonded to a strip of high resolution optically reflective immediate read laser recording material adhered to one side of the card, being laser recordable in place on said card and having a minimal laser recording capacity of 250,000 binary bits, having laser created data spots in a surrounding optically contrasting field of said strip, representing accumulated transaction data, with a dimension of said spots being less than 25 microns, the optical reflective contrast ratio of said spots with respect to the surrounding field being a least two to one,

laser means having a beam disposed in laser writing relation with respect to said strip for writing said spots, representing transaction data, the spots having a size of less than 25 microns,

a light detector means disposed in reading relation with respect to said strip and said beam for immediately reading said spots upon writing, and

means for providing relative motion between the laser beam and the card for sequentially reading transaction data on the card and writing transaction data onto said card in a permanent manner.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein said strip includes previously recorded data bits represented by data spots aligned in paths.

5. The system of claim 3 where the data spots have a lower reflectivity than the surrounding reflectivity.

6. The system of claim 3 where the data spots have a higher reflectivity than the surrounding reflectivity.